Lawrence Valenstein (1899–1982) was an American advertising executive who founded the
Grey Advertising Agency.
[New York Times: "LAWRENCE VALENSTEIN DIES AT 83; FOUNDER OF GREY ADVERTISING" by Suzanne Daley]
September 12, 1982[Advertising Age: "Grey Advertising Agency (Grey Advertising; Grey Worldwide)"]
September 15, 2003
Biography
Valenstein was born in 1899.
On August 1, 1917, at the age of 18, Valenstein borrowed $100 and started his own company located at 309 Fifth Avenue in Manhattan.
He named the company the Grey Agency because the walls of the office were grey.
The company's original focus was to publish direct mailings for the furrier industry which morphed into a magazine named ''Furs and Fashions''.
In 1925, the firm, renamed the Grey Advertising Agency, became a full-fledged advertising agency
and differentiated itself from its competitors by using a team approach to advertising that closely worked with its customers and conducted extensive marketing research.
Valenstein focused on developing a brand through pre-selling and building a market for it.
In the 1930s the firm focused on soft goods.
In the 1940s, the firm was billing $1 million per year.
In 1947, after winning
Gruen watch account, billings reached $10 million.
In 1955, after winning the
Block Drug
Block Drug Company was a pharmaceutical company based in Jersey City, New Jersey, United States, that specialized in dental care products. Its most popular products included Polident denture cleanser, Poli-Grip denture adhesive, Dentu-Creme dentu ...
account, Grey's billings reached $30 million.
In 1956, Valenstein became chairman of the board and
Arthur C. Fatt (hired in 1921 at the age of seventeen) became president.
In 1957, Grey developed the widely successful "Leaving now for Trenton, Philadelphia and Cucamonga!" campaign for
Greyhound Bus
Greyhound Lines, Inc. is an American operator of intercity bus services. Greyhound operates the largest intercity bus network in the United States, and also operates charter and Amtrak Thruway services, as well as intercity buses in Mexico. B ...
with the tagline "Go Greyhound and leave the driving to us."
In 1961, billings reached $59 million
and Valenstein became chairman of the executive committee;
Fatt was named chairman and
Herbert D. Strauss its president.
In 1961, the firm expanded by opening an office in Los Angeles;
and he expanded internationally by opening offices in London in 1962 and Japan in 1963.
In 1964, billings reached $100 million.
In 1965, the firm went public trading on the
Nasdaq
The Nasdaq Stock Market (; National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotations) is an American stock exchange based in New York City. It is the most active stock trading venue in the U.S. by volume, and ranked second on the list ...
exchange and the firm also expanded into the use of
psychographics
Psychographics is defined as "market research or statistics classifying population groups according to psychological variables" The term psychographics is derived from the words "psychological" and "demographics" Two common approaches to psychogr ...
(the analysis of consumer lifestyles).
In 1965, Valenstein retired and was named founder/chairman.
Personal life
Valenstein was married to Alice Starr; they had two children: John Valenstein; and Linda Valenstein Elkind.
In 1959, his daughter married engineer
Jerome I. Elkind
Jerome Elkind is an American electrical engineer and computer scientist. In 1988 he was co-founder of the Lexia Institute.
Biography
Elkind was educated at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, earning his undergraduate degree in 1951 and Sc. ...
in a
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
ceremony in
Scarsdale. In 1971, his son married Karen Wishnew who was one of the first women to become an investment banker.
New York Times: "WOMEN: January 6, 1985; Having, Getting, Earning, Eating" by Jane Gross
April 14, 1996
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valenstein, Lawrence
American advertising executives
1899 births
1982 deaths
20th-century American Jews
20th-century American businesspeople